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mcbridefliers

Cleaning feathers

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I see no need for an apology about getting "off track". Such an exchange should be beneficial to many, if not most all, who bother to read it.

 

You and I share basically the same philosophy, and methods for the care and storage of our materials. As the adage goes: "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." I do disagree with your thoughts on my point that the 'bugs' that are to be found on fresh kill skins being blood suckers, and will starve in short order, is lost on the audience. I feel that it is incumbent on those of us who, either by education or from experience, or both as in my case, try to clear up all of the misguided, but well-meaning, information that is out there that so befuddles the 'newbies'. Even if we convince just one such bewildered soul, mentioning the point is worth the effort.

 

For those whose bulb does not burn brightly enough to grasp the significance of the point about them being blood suckers, etc., none of the other info posted in response is going to be of benefit either. As they really have no "distinctions to make", they should take it at face value. If they don't care, that is their problem, and further supports my underlying contention that mentioning a long laundry list of various and sundry chemicals also falls on deaf ears.

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ok, lots of interesting info on bugs and protecting your stash. So how about a 1,2,3 on picking up road kill feathers or fur?

I understand about blood suckers leaving a host, but where and how do you get the bugs that invade the bird skin in the bag that start eating the barbules. I have a grouse skin that has a little pile of waste in the bottom. looks like I'm loseing feathers???

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Ok well first off keep that away, even in the bag from your other stuff. Wash it with mild soap and hot water and blot dry it then stick in the deep freeze. Defrost after week, wash, deep freeze. Defrost wash, blow dry to return feathers to their best and then store in a bag with moth ball(bag needs to be air tight for that to work. Or I have started using food grade diatomasceous earth and no issues so far.

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Borax is also a good natural insecticide. What I do with road kill, after I skin it, is wash it with dog flea shampoo, and then soak it for a few day in a salt and borax solution. After 3 or 4 days, I'll scrape it some more and then tan it. That process usually kills anything on the skin.

 

For wild bird feathers (gifts from bird hunting friends) I start with the freezer routine, then dust them with borax, and store them with a bit of a cut up flea collar, or a piece off a No-Pest Strip. Not organic, but very effective.

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